Amrum – bird watching and mudflat tours

The North Frisian island of Amrum is one of the best day trip destinations in Schleswig-Holstein. With its bracing North Sea air, coastal wetlands and a beach that seems to stretch on forever, Amrum is ideal for active holidays and relaxation.

Amrum covers 20.46 square kilometres in all, making it Germany's tenth-largest island. It is located in the heart of the Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park and boasts the incredibly wide Kniepsand beach, which is great for water sports and swimming. The sandbank that makes up the beach is ten kilometres long and almost 1.5 metres across at its widest point. This is almost as wide as the island itself, which measures 2.5 kilometres from one side to the other. With winds reaching gale force six, Amrum offers perfect conditions for windsurfers, sailors and kiteboarders. And thanks to its lighthouse – at 63m above sea level the tallest on the North Sea coast – you can have a bird's eye view of the exciting goings-on below.

As well as its many activities, Amrum Island offers the chance to experience remarkable natural spectacles. For example when thousands of sea and coastal birds populate the island during breeding season, attracted by the coastal wetlands' rich supply of food. When the wetlands drain with the ebb of the tide and the sea disappears for a few hours, intrepid hikers can cross the mudflats from Amrum to the neighbouring island of Föhr (or the other way around) and become real birdwatchers in the process. Amrum is well worth a visit at any time of year. Cold weather simply results in a warmer welcome. The island's five villages have plenty of charming thatched Frisian houses for you to stay in, or wellness hotels for a relaxing break. Fish restaurants provide delicious food for the island's guests, and those keen to try out the local beer should round off the evening in a proper sailors' tavern.